NILES Mother wants justice

She said it's hard for the family to accept that her daughter's killer is still free.
By SHERRI L. SHAULIS
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
NILES -- Ilajean Woodward always told her youngest daughter she was the apple of her eye.
"Her name means 'a gift from God,' and that she was," Woodward said.
But the Niles mother never thought she would have to bury her child as the victim of a homicide.
Jane Kleese, 35, of Cynthia Street, was found dead Jan. 23 at the bottom of her basement stairs. Police thought the death was an accident, but a coroner's investigation revealed Kleese died of asphyxiation and that office ruled the case a homicide.
No arrest has been made.
Woodward says the ordeal has been hard on her and the family.
"The person who took my daughter's life is still free, and this is very hard for us to accept," Woodward said.
Difficult time
As the holiday season approaches, it's even harder for the family. Watching decorations go up and seeing families gather together reminds Kleese's relatives they will never share those things with her again.
She will not see her children grow into adults, she will not meet the baby her brother and sister-in-law are expecting and she will not spend the holidays with her family again.
"I miss her terribly," Woodward said. "She was a wonderful daughter."
One of the last pictures Woodward has of Kleese shows the two of them together at Christmas last year.
The picture shows the women with their arms around each other, smiling at the camera. It's a memory of a bond they shared.
Special bond
Though her children all live in the Mahoning Valley, Kleese and Woodward lived in the same town, allowing them to spend more time together.
"Several times she even came to help me in the middle of the night," Woodward said. "She was always there for me."
Woodward said Kleese called her to take her out to eat in Boardman just a few days before her death. As the women were getting out of the car on an icy parking lot, Kleese leaned over to help her mother, telling her to be careful.
"She said, 'If you fall and break a bone, we'll all suffer.' Little did I know that in three days we would all be suffering when Jane's life was taken from her," Woodward said.
Woodward said she knows nothing will ever bring her daughter back, but she hopes that finding her killer will bring a sense of closure.
"Justice can be served," she said. "I pray this person will be arrested, convicted and sentenced to the fullest extent of the law."
slshaulis@vindy.com